Chapter 13 : Because I Am A Mother.

Mafia's Nemesis**

He blinked slowly, trying to focus. “But why are you doing this, Mother Liza—when it's obvious that my presence cursed you?”

“Because I'm a Mother.” She glanced back at him. Smoke already curled into the sky from the direction of the village.

Her voice broke. “I can’t bear to see any of my children go astray. Nature gave you another chance—if the police take you, that change dies, and that’s what I can’t tolerate."

Antonio’s{Blade} lips parted like he wanted to say something—maybe sorry, maybe stop—but he didn't.

"We're here" Liza Minnelli announced, facing him again.

Antonio darted his eyes around. He could hear the sounds of moving vehicles, which means there is a busy road ahead.

"Is it an Express ?", he asked, his eyes filled with curiosity.

Liza nodded, she looked at him really hard. Not as a suspect, not as the man with a knuckle knife. Just a son. A man who lost sight of right and wrong.

"Did something happen?" Antonio asked, due to the intensity of her white eyes on him.

"No", she croaked, then with shaking hands, she pulled him closer by the neck, pressing her forehead to his.

Antonio didn't repulse, rather he leaned against her, and for a moment, everything was still, until Liza whispered.

"You're not some ghost of a quiet life. Son, don’t make yourself a grave in this second chance."

Antonio didn't utter a word, making Liza pull away from him.

"You can easily get a lift from there" she breathed, brushing sweat from his brow, "Bye."

"I will repay your kind gesture one day" Antonio muttered, but Liza shook her head.

"No need. Your repentance is enough". she whispered to steady him.

Then with one last glance at him, she darted back into the brush.

MEANWHILE BACK AT THE VILLAGE; A little girl, no older than five, couldn't suppress the shock of gunshot, began to cry—softly, into her sister’s shirt.

The sister, barely a teenager herself, pressed her hand to the child’s mouth and held her close.

Grinch paused before them. Then, without a word, he scooped the little girl into his arms, clutching her tightly to his chest.

Panic crawled on the teenage sister and she fell flat on her stomach, clutching Grinch's leg.

Eyes turned, fixed on the unfolding drama.

"Please don't take my sister, Hermanos {Brother}" the girl's frantic plea rang out non-stop.

"Where is the wounded man?"

“They’re looking for someone,” an elder murmured to another and it immediately spread. “The wounded fellow… the one Liza’s been hiding.”

With shaken hands the girl raised, pointing her index toward the edge of the village, toward the path Liza had taken.

Slowly Grinch returned the young girl to the ground.

"Where does that path lead to ?", he asked no one in particular.

~~~

Antonio, moving with calculated urgency, had nearly reached the main road when the sound of sirens and Police Vans sliced past him.

Without hesitation, he ducked off the path and into the dense brush, dragging his weight into the shadows.

After they swooped pass, he limply emerged, taking the now quiet road towards town.

He had walked a long distance only to come face to face with another Police Van, he tried to tactfully change paths.

But the Van's headlight sliced through the darkness, casting upon Antonio, distorting the world behind him into something nightmarish

Antonio’s fingers twitched at his sides. Fight or flight warred inside him, but his body was heavy with fatigue.

He scanned the road behind, the brush was too far to reach without being gunned down.

“Don’t move,” a voice commanded—low, calm, but firm.

Then slowly, the figure stepped out—advancing Antonio. Boots crunched against gravel, each step echoing louder than the last

Antonio blinked once, because the light obscured the figure’s face, turning them into a faceless striker.

The figure stopped a few feet away, a hand resting near the holster at their hip.

Antonio coughed out a dry laugh. “Guess I’m not making it to my House after all.”

“You might,” Their voice said, “But not on your feet.”

“You’ve come a long way, Mr Hunt.” The voice continued. "I will take it from here"

Antonio giggled at that voice—he knew it.

It was Grinch's voice.

"Cabrón {asshole}", Antonio cussed. "You nearly gave me a heart attack".

"And your absence nearly got my head blown." Grinch snapped, hoisting Antonio like a sack of grain and dragging him to the van.

"Put me down" he groaned but Grinch didn't yield until he had him secured under the seat belt.

The van door slammed shut behind him with a metallic finality.

Inside, the dim red glow of the overhead light gave Grinch’s face a hard, skeletal look—sharp cheekbones, hollow eyes, jaw clenched tight with more than just annoyance.

Antonio winced as he shifted on the seat. “You act like you’re being chased by ghosts.”

Grinch didn’t answer right away. He tapped the steering wheel with his fingers, scanning the rearview mirror before pulling away from the roadside with deliberate calm.

“You went dark for three days,” Grinch erupted finally, his voice tight.

“Three damn days, Blade. We thought you were dead.”

Antonio leaned his head back against the cold windows of the van, exhaling a bitter chuckle.

"Arrange a courtesan for me , it has being a hell of nights without one"

Grinch shot him a sidelong glance. “If I were to be in your shoes—the last thing I would be worried about is a tart{P*ssy}.”

“Old habits die hard.” Antonio remarked with a grin.

Grinch shook his head. “You’re going to get yourself killed one day.”

The van bumped over a pothole, jostling them both. Silence stretched between them, heavy with everything unsaid.

"We need to switch vehicles", Grinch broke the silence, as he pulled over by a cliff.

Antonio gave him a questioning look, but Grinch didn’t reply, not even a breath.

He grudgly stepped down and boarded the Lamborghini Aventador on stand-by.

The errand boys assemble the two other Vans, together with Grinch's own, and set it ablaze, giving it a slight push down the cliff.

The night air was filled with crackling sound as the vehicles burned, erasing whatever evidence it might hold.

Two minutes later, the hum of their exquisite cars filled the silence. With a nod from Grinch, they thrummed out like a storm.

Ahead, the road forked—one took the way leading back to the safe house, while Grinch & one other took the lane into the city.

As Grinch slowed the van, Antonio looked up, eyes hollow but burning. “What's up with the driving and formation?”

"A Shamus {Detective} is sniffing on your case"

Antonio's jaw ticked, "Those wretch—when will they get tired".

“Might as well be on your case forever. They picked a Dame{woman} this time.” Grinch hinted, veering the car into the Hunts Estate.

“Whatever," Antonio hissed. "She will eventually breath down our necks then disappear just like the others”.

"I don't think Breanna will go down the same way—when an old grudge is involved."

At the mention of the name, Antonio’s body tensed but he didn't utter a word.

Grinch noticed. “Bad News, she has a good stain on you.”

Antonio’s hand instinctively went to his arm, fingertips brushing the crimson from the wound.

“As long as I don't run into her—there shouldn't be a stain,” he muttered.

Grinch narrowed an eye at Antonio, understanding the brutality of his last statement.

‿Sombra Azul‿

Back at the village square, Liza dashed in from the brush angle.

She found her fellow villagers still on the ground, hyperventilating—fear having seized them in a panic attack.

“Where did they go?” she asked a nearby child in a low whisper, careful not to draw attention.

“The leader asked where the brush path led to—then they left,” the child replied.

One of the elders caught sight of Liza, and subtly alerted the others.

“The madling herbalist of our village is finally back,” he murmured.

Gasps and whispers rippled through the crowd.

“There she is—foolish woman”

“The cursed one…”

Some squinted through trembling lashes, while others hissed as though her presence alone might stir a forgotten curse.

Before Liza could take another step, rough hands grabbed her by the arms.

“Let me go!” she snapped, but the villagers were quicker, their fear fusing in a single act of unity.

They dragged her to the center of the square, shoving her forward like an offering to a wrathful god.

Her cloak was still stained from the forest's undergrowth.

The woven satchel at her hip clinked softly as she turned to the vengeful villagers.

“What do you think you are doing?” Her voice cut through the crowd, but it only seemed to provoke them more.

The elder who had first spoken, stepped forward, eyes sharp with resentment.

"Where did you sneak that criminal off to—while death walked through us?”

"I'm only doing my job as a herbalist" Liza defended, her voice calm but firm.

Another elder gritted his teeth, “We should have burned you along with those herbs years ago! You invited trouble and disappeared—now they’ve come for him!”

“Better late than never, let's banish her now—that way we don’t have to live in fear!” someone shouted from the back.

"Yes!", the villagers chorused.

Cold night wind embraced Liza's skin, seeing that no one was supporting her

“Mother!”

"Maya?"

Liza called in reply, her eyes sharp as flint as she searched the crowd for her teenage daughter.

Just then, a trim figure burst through the circle of bodies.

She sprinted across the square, ignoring the adults trying to hold her back.

When she reached Liza, she flung her arms around her mother, shielding her with her frame.

“You can't banish her! She didn’t do anything!” Maya cried, trembling but defiant.

"Get off Maya! Don't end up a disaster just like her", one of the resentful village men sneered, stepping forward to grab Maya.

But Liza slapped off his hand. "Don't you dare".

Her arms slowly wrapped around her daughter.

“If you have something to say to me, say it. But you will not touch my child.”

The crowd quieted, but the tension stayed—thick and unforgiving.

Just when Liza thought it was over, an elder rose.

Then another joined him, but this time pointing his staff toward Liza, not in protest but in declaration.

"For tearing down SOMBRA AZUL age long peace, Liza Minnelli—where you go from here, and what you do afterwards shall no longer be —”.

Breanna’s armored vans rolled to a halt, interrupting the village's declaration.

She stepped out first—fully geared, helmet clipped to her side, her presence commanding. Sophia followed closely behind.

The moment they advanced, panic swept through the villagers like wildfire.

They immediately scattered in all directions—some bolted into the brush, others fled toward the rocky hills in desperation.

Liza Minnelli was among the few who remained rooted to the spot.

She took a step forward, placing himself protectively in front of her daughter, who instinctively recoiled behind her.

“What do you want with us again?” she asked as Breanna’s eyes locked onto her.

“I want the criminal your village chose to protect.” Breanna replied with a wicked grin, adjusting her gloves with a sharp tug.

"We don't harbour criminals", Liza countered immediately.

"Moreover we are yet to recover from the last shock you brought with you.”

“Nonsense—We’re just arriving now,” Breanna seethed. But then, she blinked her eyes, as a stray thought hit her memory.

"Last shock?—But we just got here".

Liza and Maya exchanged confused looks "If they are just arriving, then who were the ones that left not too long ago?” Maya asked, raising a brow at her Mother.

"The goons, maybe?", Liza retorted, her tone edged with suspicion.

"Holy crap!!" Breanna cussed, her gaze dropping to the gravel path.

Tire tracks, they were late. She hadn’t noticed the tire tracks before.

However John emerged from the Van, slightly glancing at his mother and sister.

Though it was dark, Liza Minnelli recognized him, she met his gaze squarely—her eyes speaking what her lips wouldn’t: You brought them here even after I warned you against it.

Breanna's grin widened.Then, without a word, she raised her chin slightly, and gave John a subtle signal—just enough for him to notice.

He understood. But there was a moment of hesitancy before he turned, leading the way reluctantly.

Breanna fell in step beside him. As they passed his mother, no words were exchanged, but her message was loud enough.

A low burning lantern illuminated Liza's hut, the air thick with the scent of old herbs and burnt firewood.

John hesitated at the entrance, but Breanna pushed past him without a word, her boots creaking against the wooden floor.

Her eyes swept across the room—mat, table, scattered herbs. Nothing unusual at first glance.

Casting her gaze at the floor, she saw drops of dried blood. Faint, but recent enough to glisten faintly under the moon slipping through the thatched roof.

“Fresh blood!”. She said sharply. "Search everywhere"

Two agents behind her stepped forward with a kit.

One knelt and collected the residue carefully, sealing it in a vial. Breanna didn’t wait

Her gaze moved skeptically around the room, scanning the walls, the shadows under the table, the woven baskets stacked by the corner.

But there was still, nothing substantial, she sighed, ready to call it an evening, when something caught her eye—a clay pot beside the bed, half-tucked beneath the edge of the mat.

Her brows drew together. She crouched beside it—lifting the lid without asking for permission.